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BlueHornet Releases Fourth Annual Survey about Consumer Views of Email Marketing

Report analyzes firsthand responses from more than 1,800 U.S. consumers

SAN DIEGO — August 5, 2015 — BlueHornet Networks, Inc., the email marketing provider from Digital River, Inc., today released its 2015 Consumer Views of Email Marketing report: http://bit.ly/1IKHRNO. The primary research is based on a survey of more than 1,800 U.S. consumers between the ages of 18 and 64. One of the most notable takeaways from the survey confirms that email marketing continues to be a highly effective, influential promotional tool that motivates consumers to make purchases. Further, the report reveals insights into consumer email usage and purchasing behavior as well as explores the important relationship between email, mobile and social.

Key findings from the survey include:

  • The majority of respondents (71 percent) do not use a separate email address for marketing and advertising emails, which indicates they opt-in to promotional emails with an actively-maintained email account. Further, 34 percent of respondents report that, regardless of device, they continuously check email throughout the day. Therefore, time-of-day testing may be less of a priority for marketers than in past years while the need to optimize email design for varying devices and screen sizes is more important than ever.
  • In the U.S., consumers’ standard expectation is that brands will personalize marketing emails based on their past purchases (75 percent) and interests (71 percent). Marketers must gather and organize data that is collected across their systems and segment it to deliver meaningful, targeted email messages.
  • Nearly all (98 percent) of consumers are influenced by a marketing email to make a purchase. Moreover, 78 percent make a purchase at least once a month based on an email campaign they received. These results support marketers’ continued allocation of budget to the email marketing channel.
  • Despite an increasing attachment to their mobile devices, consumers continue to be slow to embrace mobile purchasing. About half of the survey respondents stated they are simply more comfortable purchasing from a desktop or laptop computer. To change the tide, marketers must consider the end-to-end mobile shopping and buying experience.
  • Finally, nearly one-third of those surveyed are likely to follow a brand on social media, and therefore see marketing messages via multiple channels. As social media use and social advertising increase, so too should the coordination and consistency of messaging across those marketing channels.

“For the latest evolution of our survey, we expanded both our consumer panel size and our data analysis team to better understand consumers’ perceptions and expectations of email marketing. The survey results and insights make this our most interesting and compelling report to date,” said Mike Biwer, vice president and general manager for BlueHornet. “We found that consumers are very digitally connected, checking their emails throughout the day and across devices, yet surprisingly a bit unwilling to purchase via mobile devices. The vast majority expect marketers to know and understand them, and personalize messages accordingly. And they fully acknowledge the strong influence that email marketing has on their purchasing decisions. We hope digital marketers are as energized by the report findings as we are.”

BlueHornet’s 2015 Consumer Views of Email Marketing report was designed to give marketers actionable tips to improve their email marketing programs and added insight into:

  • Email Usage — The number of email addresses consumers have; how often and with which devices they check email; and the frequency and personalization of the email marketing messages they receive;
  • Purchasing Behavior — Factors and offer types that influence consumers to purchase online and the frequency of those purchases;
  • Mobile —How consumers engage with mobile email marketing and their resulting mobile purchasing preferences; and their opinions about mobile rendering; and
  • Social Media — Consumer views on the commercial uses of social media channels.

About BlueHornet Networks
BlueHornet Networks helps companies large and small reach their email potential using a combination of enterprise-scale email marketing solutions and award-winning services. Brands rely on BlueHornet’s powerful, yet easy-to-use solutions to implement basic email marketing programs or develop sophisticated lifecycle messaging campaigns. Founded in 2000, BlueHornet is located in San Diego, Calif., and is the email marketing provider from Digital River, Inc. Contact BlueHornet for more information at 866-586-3755 or sales@bluehornet.com; visit Bluehornet.com or follow @bluehornetemail on Twitter.

About Digital River, Inc.
Backed by 20 years of ecommerce experience, Digital River is recognized as a leading global provider of Commerce-as-a-Service solutions. Companies of all sizes rely on Digital River’s cloud-based commerce, payments and marketing services to manage and grow their online businesses. In 2014, Digital River processed more than $35 billion in online transactions, connecting B2B and B2C digital products companies and branded manufacturers with buyers across multiple devices and channels, and nearly every country in the world.

Digital River is headquartered in Minneapolis with offices across the U.S., Asia, Europe and South America. For more details about Digital River, visit the corporate website, read the Digital River Blog, follow @DigitalRiverInc on Twitter or call +1 952-253-1234.

Digital River is a registered trademark of Digital River, Inc. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners.